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Daily Digest

St. Jude Files Permit App for Tower Structure Work

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital has taken the next step in its construction of a seven-story patient care and research tower at 315 Danny Thomas Place, next to the Chili’s Care Center.

The hospital has filed a $12.5 million building permit application with the city-county Office of Construction Code Enforcement for sub-grade concrete structure running from the mat foundation up to and including the first floor.

St. Jude in May applied with the state Health Services and Development Agency for a Certificate of Need for a $190 million medical tower, $110 million of which is the project’s construction cost. In March, the hospital filed a $5 million permit application to begin work on the foundation and drainage system.

The Crump Firm is serving as the project’s architect, with Evans Taylor Foster Childress doing part of the work. Flintco LLC is the project’s general contractor. All the design work is expected to be completed by September, and construction is slated to last about three years.

The tower will include three surgery operatories; ICU rooms each with a connecting room for parents; and a proton-beam therapy system. The first floor will house the Global Education Collaboration Center, an auditorium that will hold about 420 people.

Source: The Daily News Online & Chandler Reports

– Daily News staff

Wharton Makes Appearance in Environmental Court

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. made a brief and unexpected appearance Tuesday, April 10, in Environmental Court.

Wharton showed up to urge General Sessions Court Judge Larry Potter to order the demolition of a damaged building on Madison Avenue near Main Street Downtown.

The building sustained serious damage last year during a heavy rain that caused its roof to collapse.

Owners had been trying to salvage the rest of the building.

In the interim, the immediate area around the building has been sealed off. At first all of the Madison block the building is on was closed to trolley and vehicle traffic.

One lane remains closed and has drawn complaints from not only City Hall but Downtown developers.

The building’s demolition has been delayed in a dispute between the city and the alleged owner on who would pay the cost of shoring up the north wall at 118 Madison and the south wall at 119 S. Court Ave. so demolition could continue.

Potter ordered the city to shore up the walls and the cost would be charged as a lien by the city of Memphis against the property or the owners.

The ownership of the building is in dispute.

The courtroom role is not new for Wharton who was a practicing private attorney and Shelby County public defender before he was elected Shelby County mayor in 2002.

– Bill Dries

Herbi-Systems Pres. Named Bartlett’s Top Entrepreneur

Kenny D. Crenshaw, owner and president of Herbi-Systems Inc., has been named Entrepreneur of the Year by the Bartlett Area Chamber of Commerce, Northeast Shelby County’s largest business membership organization.

Founded in 1984, locally owned Herbi-Systems is the second largest lawn care provider in the Memphis area, second only to national company TruGreen, according to the Bartlett Chamber. Herbi-Systems employs 30 people and serves nearly 8,000 residential, commercial and government clients.

Crenshaw, who holds a bachelor’s degree in agricultural engineering technology and business from Mississippi State University, is a founding members of the Memphis Area Action Council of the National Federation of Independent Business. He serves on the NFIB board, as well as on the organization’s state Leadership Council.

Candidates for Bartlett Chamber Entrepreneur of the Year were selected by the 600-member general membership, which represents a market area of about 250,000 people, the Chamber said.

– Aisling Maki

Arthur Seessel Named MSO Interim CEO

Arthur Seessel III will be the interim CEO of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, which will be conducting a national search for a successor to departing president and CEO Ryan Fleur.

Fleur is leaving Memphis to be the executive vice president of orchestra advancement with the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Seessel is a native Memphian and the former president of Seessel’s Supermarkets. He also serves on a variety of corporate and community board.

– Andy Meek

Sunset Atop the Madison Starts Thursday

The Madison Hotel is kicking off a new season of Sunset Atop the Madison Thursday, April 12.

First up is Elmo & the Shades from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. Weather permitting, Sunset will continue every Thursday night through the end of August.

The events feature live entertainment, a special rooftop terrace menu created by eighty3 executive chef Connor O’Neill, a cash bar with drinks and the hotel’s sunset view.

Other acts slated for April are the Memphis All-Stars April 19 and Joyce Cobb April 26. The lineup beyond that includes Deering & Down, Marcela Pinilla, Billy Gibson, Reba Russell Band and Brian “Breeze” Cayolle & Friends.

Doors open each Thursday at 6:30 p.m., and admission is $7.

– Andy Meek

PRSA Vox Awards Slated for Friday

The 2012 Public Relations Society of America Vox Awards Dinner The Storytellers is slated for Friday, April 13, at the University Club of Memphis, 1346 Central Ave.

Special guest emcees are Ned Canty, general director of Opera Memphis, and Kontji Anthony, reporter-anchor of Action News 5 WMC-TV.

The event begins at 6 p.m. with cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and a display of the winning entries.

Dinner, a special appearance by Opera Memphis performers, and the awards presentation will commence at 7 p.m.

For sponsorship opportunities or more information, contact PRSA Vox at info@prsavox.com.

– Sarah Baker

Cosmetic Procedures Bill Opponents Protest Changes

Opponents of a bill to change legal requirements for cosmetic procedures have staged a protest at the legislative office complex in Nashville.

The group waved signs at the entrance to Legislative Plaza on Wednesday morning to urge lawmakers to abandon the measure sponsored by Rep. Mike Sparks of Smyrna and fellow Republican Sen. Jim Tracy of Shelbyville.

The protesters say the bill would cost jobs at beauty salons and spas by requiring cosmetic and aesthetic procedures involving lasers and intense pulse light machines to be performed under the supervision of a physician.

The bill has yet to be scheduled for a full Senate vote, while the companion bill was awaiting consideration in the House Health and Human services committee.

– The Associated Press

House Passes Haslam’s Civil Service Changes

The Tennessee House has approved Republican Gov. Bill Haslam’s plan to overhaul state civil service rules after agreeing to changes needed to bring the Tennessee State Employees Association on board.

The measure passed 74-19 on Wednesday would make it easier for the executive branch employees to be hired and fired, and would allow for more targeted merit raises for high performing workers.

Republican Rep. Bill Dunn of Knoxville, who carried the House bill on behalf of the Haslam administration, noted that negotiations with the TSEA had resulted in about 20 changes to the original bill — including that seniority will still be a factor in making decisions on staffing changes.

The companion bill was scheduled for a vote in the Senate on Thursday.